Justice Anthony Kennedy, who wrote the decision legalizing same-sex marriage in the U.S.

Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Justice Anthony Kennedy, who authored today’s ruling legalizing same-sex marriage throughout the United States, is sometimes made fun of for his notoriously purple prose. But today he managed to close his opinion with one of the most beautiful passages you’ll likely read in a court case. I teared up. So did a few other Slate staffers.